The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls is currently hosting a spectacular look at a private collection, earmarked for future donation to the museum, from the collector Thomas Clark, a resident of Saratoga County.
The exhibition, called An Enduring Legacy: American Impressionist Landscapes from the Thomas Clark Collection, features a vast collection of American Impressionist works, and other late 19th and early 20th century works of art. Most are oils, and most are landscapes, except for a two cityscapes and figures in the landscape.
Although many of the painters in the exhibit may not be familiar names, they will likely become more well-known as more research is done to understand these artists and their setting, as well as their influence. It is clear to see that they have had a major influence on the contemporary titans of American painting, such as Nell Blaine, Mary Frank, Wolf Khan, Paul Resika and the early works of Richard Deibenkorn.
A history of Clark’s collection is described in text, and to either side works by George Loftus Noyes (1864-1954) and Arthur Clifton Goodwin (1864-1924) set the pace for the show inside. The Noyes is a delightful snow-laden pathway, with wheel tracks carved into the shadows on the trail. The Goodwin is a twilight scene of a peaceful village edge in fading winter shadows.
Peppered throughout the show are other little gems, not to be overlooked, such as the Robert Wood (1889-1979) with a fields of blue flowers covering the foreground of a Texas range; or two perfect paintings of figures in the landscape, by Alan Dean Cochran (1888-1971) and Emile Guppe (1896-1978). The Guppe has two nudes bathing beside a white birch. Other gems include:
A 1935 bold little painting featuring a brightly colored songbird on a solitary twig, above a freshly painted winter scene by Charles Curtis (1886-1950) called `Cockle-Tee-Tee.`
`Precious tip of a sailboat` by Irving Ramsey Wiles (1861-1948) with pastels and brushstrokes that show complete sensitivity to the subject, evoking a soft, sensuous feeling of sailing in the wind on the water.
The Wiles sailboats are positioned above a precious landscape by one of the few female painters of the era, Margaret Jordan Patterson (1867-1950). This work has an understated style that succeeds in luring the eye to distant blue hills (made with just a very few simple brushstrokes) through the venue of a row of upright trees. It is a sensitive, immediate and playful work.
The feel of spring and the smell of new grass comes to life as one takes in the John Joseph Enneking (1841-1916) brightly colored meadow scene.
One of the walls contains several magnificent works inspired by the fresh clean harbors in and around Glouster, Massachusetts. A nearly pointillist approach to a shipyard is taken by Lillian Burk Messer (1864-1942) and a fauvist approach to similar subject matter is taken by Harry Aiken Vincent (1864-1931).
Along the back wall, and by far the most astounding works on display, are the collection of winter scenes, clearly done in the open air (plein-air) style, where a somewhat uncomfortable hike in the wood, freezing fingers, and rapidly moving winter sunlight were all battled by the painters as they emerge victoriously with some of the most provocative landscapes ever done. A favorite is the `Bucks County Landscape` by Walter Emerson Baum (1884-1956) and is featured on cards in the museum’s store.
Each painting in the show will speak differently to each viewer, but for certain, this show is a rare glimpse into the insights of a masterful collector and a truly outstanding display of the teamwork of a brilliant curator and staff.
The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls is located at 161 Warren St. The paintings from the Clark collection will be on display until March 28.
The author is an artist and former gallery owner who resides in Wilton.
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